BACKGROUND Cervical pedicle screw (CPS) insertion is a technically demanding procedure. The quantitative understanding of cervical pedicle morphology, especially the narrowest part of cervical pedicle or isthmus, would minimize the risk of catastrophic damage to surrounding neurovascular structures and improve surgical outcome. The aim of this study was to investigate morphology and quantify co...

OBJECTIVE To compare the von Mises stresses of the internal fixation devices among different short segment pedicle screw fixation techniques to treat thoracic 12 vertebral fractures, especially the mono-segment pedicle screw fixation and intermediate unilateral pedicle screw fixation techniques. METHODS Finite element methods were utilised to investigate the biomechanical comparison of the fo...

BACKGROUND The role of antibiotics in surgical procedures where the risk of surgical site infection (SSI) is low remains uncertain. There is, to date, no evidence to justify the routine use of antibiotics in postoperative reduction mammaplasty. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of postoperative antibiotic treatment on the occurrence of SSI after breast reduction surgery. METHODS...

OBJECTIVE A variety of different pedicle screws entry point techniques are used for the lumbar pedicle screws placement. This study reported Kim's entry point of lumbar pedicle screws with free hand technique and the accuracy of this technique. METHODS We retrospectively reviewed the 584 cases with free hand placed lumbar pedicle screw placement. The diagnosis included 491 cases with degenera...

Cervical pedicle screw has been shown to provide stronger fixation than other methods. Due to these virtue of biomechanical characteristic, pedicle screw fixation can be used in a wide range of cervical spinal disorders, and excellent clinical results have been reported. However, this procedure is technically demanding because of the great variation in pedicle dimension and angulations between ...

OBJECTIVE To present the accuracy and safety of cervical pedicle screw insertion using the technique with direct exposure of the pedicle by laminoforaminotomy. METHODS We retrospectively reviewed 12 consecutive patients. A total of 104 subaxial cervical pedicle screws in 12 patients had been inserted. We also assessed the clinical and radiological outcomes and analyzed the direction and grade...

While the biomechanical properties of pedicle screws have proven to be superior in the lumbar spine, little is known concerning pullout strength of pedicle screws in comparison to hooks in the thoracic spine. In vitro biomechanical pullout testing was performed to evaluate the axial pullout strength of pedicle screws versus pedicle and laminar hooks in the thoracic spine with regard to surgical...

Rod reduction to pedicle screws is used for a variety of spinal fixation procedures; however, it can alter the integrity of the screw-bone interface. The authors investigated the effect of pedicle fill (ratio of pedicle screw diameter to pedicle diameter) on the strength of the screw-bone interface after simulated rod reduction on 17 vertebrae (3 thoracolumbar spine specimens). Pedicle diameter...

OBJECTIVES No studies have compared monoaxial and polyaxial pedicle screws with regard to the von Mises stress of the instrumentation, intradiscal pressures of the adjacent segment and adjacent segment degeneration. METHODS Short-segment monoaxial/polyaxial pedicle screw fixation techniques were compared using finite element methods, and the redistributed T11-L1 segment range of motion, large...

BACKGROUND Posterior, atlantoaxial (AA) fusions of the cervical spine may include either standard (26 mm) or short (16 mm) C2 pedicle screws. This manuscript focused on an in vitro biomechanical comparison of standard versus short C2 pedicle screws to perform posterior C1-C2 AA fusions. METHODS Twelve human cadaveric spines underwent C1 lateral mass screw and standard C2 pedicle screw (n = 6)...